Speech-Language Pathologists
Assess and treat persons with speech, language, voice, and fluency disorders. May select alternative communication systems and teach their use. May perform research related to speech and language problems.
- O*NET-SOC code
29-1127.00 - Preparation Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed
Wages
Median annual wage, U.S.$97,870
Employment, U.S.183,390
Median hourly wage$47.05
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $62,900 | $77,730 | $97,870 | $114,570 | $134,160 |
By state (51)
| State | Employment | Median annual | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 2,060 | $73,660 | 0.83 |
| Alaska | 340 | $102,670 | 0.89 |
| Arizona | 3,390 | $97,800 | 0.89 |
| Arkansas | 2,430 | $83,580 | 1.58 |
| California | 16,930 | $118,970 | 0.79 |
| Colorado | 4,420 | $110,750 | 1.30 |
| Connecticut | 2,390 | $100,110 | 1.19 |
| Delaware | 690 | $102,760 | 1.21 |
| District of Columbia | 390 | $109,380 | 0.47 |
| Florida | 10,080 | $99,990 | 0.86 |
| Georgia | 4,030 | $96,760 | 0.70 |
| Hawaii | 270 | $97,560 | 0.37 |
| Idaho | 1,210 | $84,380 | 1.20 |
| Illinois | 9,040 | $95,080 | 1.26 |
| Indiana | 3,310 | $87,360 | 0.88 |
| Iowa | 1,540 | $81,050 | 0.84 |
| Kansas | 1,690 | $80,120 | 1.00 |
| Kentucky | 2,610 | $83,550 | 1.11 |
| Louisiana | 3,000 | $69,610 | 1.31 |
| Maine | 640 | $82,660 | 0.85 |
| Maryland | 3,510 | $99,190 | 1.08 |
| Massachusetts | 5,290 | $101,310 | 1.23 |
| Michigan | 4,730 | $89,120 | 0.91 |
| Minnesota | 3,890 | $89,380 | 1.12 |
| Mississippi | 1,790 | $78,130 | 1.31 |
| Missouri | 3,230 | $89,280 | 0.93 |
| Montana | 490 | $78,740 | 0.81 |
| Nebraska | 1,310 | $84,350 | 1.08 |
| Nevada | 1,270 | $104,510 | 0.69 |
| New Hampshire | 720 | $83,040 | 0.89 |
| New Jersey | 6,840 | $101,560 | 1.35 |
| New Mexico | 1,250 | $98,690 | 1.22 |
| New York | 15,310 | $100,610 | 1.34 |
| North Carolina | 5,600 | $86,460 | 0.96 |
| North Dakota | 630 | $75,240 | 1.24 |
| Ohio | 7,270 | $93,300 | 1.11 |
| Oklahoma | 1,870 | $84,470 | 0.93 |
| Oregon | 1,600 | $102,660 | 0.69 |
| Pennsylvania | 6,570 | $92,960 | 0.92 |
| Rhode Island | 720 | $104,000 | 1.22 |
| South Carolina | 2,190 | $90,530 | 0.81 |
| South Dakota | 410 | $65,680 | 0.77 |
| Tennessee | 3,320 | $84,630 | 0.86 |
| Texas | 19,120 | $99,910 | 1.15 |
| Utah | 1,460 | $91,560 | 0.71 |
| Vermont | 430 | $82,090 | 1.20 |
| Virginia | 4,460 | $96,250 | 0.92 |
| Washington | 3,570 | $105,550 | 0.85 |
| West Virginia | 880 | $80,970 | 1.07 |
| Wisconsin | 2,940 | $83,000 | 0.85 |
| Wyoming | 240 | $82,040 | 0.72 |
Similar occupations
Similarity is our measure: the cosine of importance x level over all 120 O*NET skills, knowledge areas and abilities. It is not an O*NET finding. More.
Circles are the 20 most similar occupations, coloured by Job Zone. Lines join pairs where one is among the other's 10 most similar; darker lines are pairs O*NET also lists as related. Drag a circle to move it out of the way; select one to open it.
| # | Occupation | Job Zone | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Speech-Language Pathology Assistants | 3 | 0.977 |
| 2 | Neuropsychologists | 5 | 0.965 |
| 3 | Special Education Teachers, Secondary School | 4 | 0.965 |
| 4 | Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education | 4 | 0.963 |
| 5 | Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers | 5 | 0.962 |
| 6 | Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten | 4 | 0.962 |
| 7 | Special Education Teachers, Elementary School | 4 | 0.961 |
| 8 | Educational, Guidance, and Career Counselors and Advisors | 5 | 0.961 |
| 9 | Clinical Neuropsychologists | 5 | 0.961 |
| 10 | Special Education Teachers, Preschool | 4 | 0.960 |
One skill away
Among the 50 occupations most similar to Speech-Language Pathologists, those at the same Job Zone or lower, where exactly one skill rated at least 3 in importance needs a level more than 0.75 points higher (on O*NET's 0-7 level scale). Our definition. Change the thresholds.
| Occupation | Skill to build | Level gap | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clinical Neuropsychologists | Persuasion | 0.88 | 0.961 |
| Substance Abuse and Behavioral Disorder Counselors | Persuasion | 1.00 | 0.957 |
| Nursing Instructors and Teachers, Postsecondary | Instructing | 1.00 | 0.956 |
| Clinical and Counseling Psychologists | Active Listening | 0.76 | 0.955 |
| Healthcare Social Workers | Social Perceptiveness | 0.87 | 0.950 |
| Acute Care Nurses | Operations Monitoring | 1.24 | 0.948 |
| Clinical Nurse Specialists | Persuasion | 0.88 | 0.947 |
| Dietitians and Nutritionists | Persuasion | 1.00 | 0.946 |
| Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Physicians | Science | 0.88 | 0.943 |
Software to learn next
Software used by at least 3 of the 20 occupations most similar to Speech-Language Pathologists, excluding software Speech-Language Pathologists already lists and any you named. Ranked by how many of them use it, weighted by how much more common it is among them than across all occupations (lift). Our ranking.
| Software | Similar jobs using it | Lift |
|---|---|---|
| EasyCBM | 4 of 20 | 23.1x |
| Screen magnification software | 4 of 20 | 23.1x |
| Children's educational software | 4 of 20 | 20.5x |
| Screen reader software | 4 of 20 | 20.5x |
| American Sign Language Browser | 3 of 20 | 46.2x |
| Athena Software Penelope Case Management | 3 of 20 | 46.2x |
| Drawing software | 3 of 20 | 34.6x |
| Noldus Information Technology The Observer XT | 3 of 20 | 34.6x |
| Patient electronic medical record EMR software | 4 of 20 | 14.2x |
| Common Curriculum | 4 of 20 | 13.2x |
Skills
From O*NET data. Importance is rated 1 to 5 and level 0 to 7.
| Skill | Type | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reading Comprehension | Essential skill | 4.12 | 5.00 |
| Social Perceptiveness | Transferable skill | 4.12 | 4.25 |
| Active Listening | Essential skill | 4.12 | 4.12 |
| Critical Thinking | Essential skill | 4.12 | 4.12 |
| Writing | Essential skill | 4.00 | 4.38 |
| Speaking | Essential skill | 4.00 | 4.25 |
| Learning Strategies | Essential skill | 4.00 | 4.12 |
| Active Learning | Essential skill | 3.88 | 4.25 |
| Monitoring | Essential skill | 3.88 | 4.12 |
| Instructing | Transferable skill | 3.88 | 4.00 |
| Complex Problem Solving | Transferable skill | 3.88 | 3.88 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | Transferable skill | 3.75 | 3.88 |
| Service Orientation | Transferable skill | 3.75 | 3.75 |
| Coordination | Transferable skill | 3.25 | 3.75 |
| Time Management | Transferable skill | 3.25 | 3.25 |
| Systems Evaluation | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.62 |
| Systems Analysis | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.25 |
| Operations Analysis | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.12 |
| Persuasion | Transferable skill | 2.88 | 3.00 |
| Science | Essential skill | 2.88 | 3.00 |
| Negotiation | Transferable skill | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Management of Personnel Resources | Transferable skill | 2.38 | 2.62 |
| Quality Control Analysis | Transferable skill | 2.25 | 2.25 |
| Operations Monitoring | Transferable skill | 2.12 | 1.88 |
| Mathematics | Essential skill | 2.00 | 2.38 |
| Technology Design | Transferable skill | 1.88 | 1.88 |
| Programming | Transferable skill | 1.62 | 0.88 |
| Operation and Control | Transferable skill | 1.62 | 0.75 |
| Troubleshooting | Transferable skill | 1.62 | 0.62 |
| Equipment Selection | Transferable skill | 1.50 | 0.62 |
| Management of Material Resources | Transferable skill | 1.12 | not rated |
| Equipment Maintenance | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Installation | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Management of Financial Resources | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Repairing | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
Knowledge (33) and abilities (52)
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| English Language | 4.89 | 5.73 |
| Education and Training | 4.17 | 5.47 |
| Customer and Personal Service | 4.02 | 5.02 |
| Psychology | 4.02 | 4.92 |
| Therapy and Counseling | 3.95 | 5.10 |
| Administrative | 3.57 | 3.96 |
| Sociology and Anthropology | 3.23 | 3.71 |
| Medicine and Dentistry | 3.15 | 3.25 |
| Communications and Media | 2.99 | 2.69 |
| Public Safety and Security | 2.91 | 2.72 |
| Computers and Electronics | 2.78 | 3.65 |
| Biology | 2.60 | 2.61 |
| Mathematics | 2.57 | 2.87 |
| Administration and Management | 2.55 | 2.28 |
| Law and Government | 2.39 | 2.52 |
| Foreign Language | 2.12 | 1.61 |
| Personnel and Human Resources | 1.91 | 1.47 |
| Philosophy and Theology | 1.90 | 2.19 |
| Telecommunications | 1.84 | 1.23 |
| Geography | 1.72 | 2.32 |
| Economics and Accounting | 1.56 | 0.84 |
| Fine Arts | 1.46 | 0.99 |
| Transportation | 1.41 | not rated |
| Chemistry | 1.41 | 0.89 |
| Physics | 1.41 | 0.64 |
| Engineering and Technology | 1.37 | not rated |
| Sales and Marketing | 1.33 | not rated |
| History and Archeology | 1.33 | 1.11 |
| Food Production | 1.29 | not rated |
| Design | 1.25 | not rated |
| Mechanical | 1.24 | not rated |
| Production and Processing | 1.14 | not rated |
| Building and Construction | 1.00 | not rated |
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Oral Comprehension | 4.50 | 4.88 |
| Speech Recognition | 4.25 | 5.38 |
| Oral Expression | 4.25 | 5.00 |
| Written Expression | 4.25 | 4.75 |
| Speech Clarity | 4.12 | 4.62 |
| Written Comprehension | 4.12 | 4.50 |
| Inductive Reasoning | 4.00 | 4.38 |
| Problem Sensitivity | 4.00 | 4.25 |
| Deductive Reasoning | 4.00 | 4.12 |
| Fluency of Ideas | 3.75 | 4.12 |
| Information Ordering | 3.75 | 4.12 |
| Category Flexibility | 3.75 | 4.00 |
| Hearing Sensitivity | 3.62 | 3.88 |
| Near Vision | 3.62 | 3.75 |
| Flexibility of Closure | 3.25 | 4.00 |
| Originality | 3.25 | 3.88 |
| Speed of Closure | 3.12 | 3.25 |
| Perceptual Speed | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Auditory Attention | 3.12 | 3.00 |
| Selective Attention | 3.00 | 2.88 |
| Time Sharing | 2.88 | 2.62 |
| Mathematical Reasoning | 2.75 | 2.88 |
| Memorization | 2.75 | 2.88 |
| Visualization | 2.50 | 2.62 |
| Far Vision | 2.50 | 2.50 |
| Number Facility | 2.38 | 2.50 |
| Finger Dexterity | 2.12 | 1.88 |
| Trunk Strength | 2.00 | 1.62 |
| Visual Color Discrimination | 2.00 | 1.62 |
| Arm-Hand Steadiness | 2.00 | 1.38 |
| Wrist-Finger Speed | 1.88 | 1.12 |
| Manual Dexterity | 1.62 | 0.75 |
| Sound Localization | 1.38 | 0.50 |
| Depth Perception | 1.38 | 0.38 |
| Extent Flexibility | 1.38 | 0.38 |
| Static Strength | 1.25 | not rated |
| Control Precision | 1.12 | not rated |
| Multilimb Coordination | 1.12 | not rated |
| Response Orientation | 1.12 | not rated |
| Stamina | 1.12 | not rated |
| Dynamic Flexibility | 1.00 | not rated |
| Dynamic Strength | 1.00 | not rated |
| Explosive Strength | 1.00 | not rated |
| Glare Sensitivity | 1.00 | not rated |
| Gross Body Coordination | 1.00 | not rated |
| Gross Body Equilibrium | 1.00 | not rated |
| Night Vision | 1.00 | not rated |
| Peripheral Vision | 1.00 | not rated |
| Rate Control | 1.00 | not rated |
| Reaction Time | 1.00 | not rated |
| Spatial Orientation | 1.00 | not rated |
| Speed of Limb Movement | 1.00 | not rated |
Software used
Examples from O*NET data. "Hot" and "in demand" are O*NET flags for technologies often listed in job postings.
- Microsoft Excel hot
- Microsoft Office software hot
- Microsoft Word hot
- eClinicalWorks EHR software hot
- Adobe Audition
- Apple Logic Pro
- Avaaz Innovations AphasiaMate
- Avaaz Innovations Computerized Speech Research Environment CSRE
- Avaaz Innovations Interactive Voice Analysis System IVANS
- Biofeedback software
- Bungalow Software Aphasia Tutor
- Dropbox
- ELR Software eLr Extra Language Resources
- Email software
- KayPENTAX Multi-Speech
- KayPENTAX Nasometer
- Language analysis software
- Learning Fundamentals Speech Visualization
- Micro Video Voice Speech Training System
- Propeller Multimedia React2
- Signal analysis software
- Speech analysis software
- Tadpoles
- Text to speech software
- Web browser software
- Words+ E Z Keys for Windows
- YouTube
Where it concentrates
Metro areas ranked by BLS location quotient: the occupation's share of the area's jobs divided by its share of all US jobs. Above 1 means more concentrated than the nation. Metros employing fewer than 100 are left out.
| Metro area | Employment | Location quotient | Median annual |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jonesboro, AR | 240 | 3.31 | $91,020 |
| Victoria, TX | 140 | 3.12 | $95,950 |
| Slidell-Mandeville-Covington, LA | 300 | 2.62 | $60,790 |
| Homosassa Springs, FL | 110 | 2.58 | $99,170 |
| Greenville, NC | 240 | 2.47 | $101,580 |
| Pocatello, ID | 110 | 2.34 | $76,140 |
| Las Cruces, NM | 200 | 2.15 | $102,850 |
| Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR | 810 | 1.93 | $86,380 |
| Colorado Springs, CO | 710 | 1.91 | $108,140 |
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX | 2,860 | 1.88 | $106,290 |